My Life With You (a Kakashi Hatake love story)
by xThatOneWriterGirlx
Summary: Sasuke and Itachi has an older sister Keiko Uchiha who had returned to the village. After working under the third Hokage as an Anbu member, she gets assigned to lead Team 7 with the infamous Kakashi Hatake. Will Kakashi be able to break down the tough exterior Keiko built to protect herself? Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto characters, and full story is posted on Wattpad!
1. Chapter 1

**Prologue**

It's said that the sharingan awakens whenever an Uchiha goes through some sort of trauma or suddenly feels a large amount of emotion towards something... I still remember the first day I awoke my sharingan.

_Flashback~_

_It was my birthday._ I had just turned 7 and I had spent the majority of the afternoon spending time with my favorite little brother Itachi. Well, at the current time Itachi was my only brother so I'm allowed to call him my favorite. We both took off our shoes and ran inside. Mother was cooking my favorite dinner, Tsukemen Ramen, and smiling softly while Itachi excitedly rattled on how the new jutsu I taught him was "the coolest thing ever!"

"Itachi dear, go clean up for dinner and you can tell me more about this jutsu after dinner." She kept that warm smile on her face. _I loved her smile. It always made me feel safe._ Itachi pouted but obliged.

"Ma, will papa be here tonight?" I helped set up the table hoping that we could have a family dinner for once. Mother stopped stirring for a moment and rested a hand on her very pregnant belly.

"I'm sure he will honey." She gave me that warm smile again. I grinned and finished setting everything up when I heard the door slide open. My heart fluttered in excitement.

"Papa!" I ran towards the front door and gave father a big hug earning a slight grunt. I let go and gave him a cheeky smile, "Papa did you hear about me graduating the academy?" Looking up with excitement, I was greeted with a slight nod and a pat on the head. _Even though he showed little emotion, I knew that he loved me and that he was proud_.

"How was your day dear?" Mother walked in and leaned gently on the wall. Father gave her a gentle kiss on her forehead and rubbed her belly.

"It was fine." He then went to go wash up for dinner.

_After Dinnertime~ _

I helped mother put away the dishes and clean up while father was about to take Itachi with him to walk around the clan. Just before he opened the door to go out there was a slight knock on the door. I peeked around the wall and saw that one of the clan's elders had come to visit. Father froze and ushered Itachi and I into a different room. I looked up towards mother and sent her a questioning look. However, this time she didn't smile. Her face was completely stoic. The elder frowned at me but followed father and mother.

"Keiko when will you show me that other jutsu you did earlier today?" Itachi tugged on my sleeve and looked up at me with hopeful eyes.

"Itachi you just learned a new one today. Master this one and then I'll teach you the next one." I smiled and tousled his hair causing him to make that adorable pout that always made me laugh.

Just then father walked into the room, "Keiko will you come with me? Say goodbye to Itachi and your mother, it's a long journey." His eyes were cold but his face seemed different. I didn't dwell on it though and gave Itachi a tight hug and skipped along to mother. After she gave me a big hug I saw something I had never seen before. She was crying. Of course she was trying to be strong and smiled through her tears and poked my forehead.

"Be safe baby girl." A fluttering feeling grew in my chest making me anxious. Mother never cries and I didn't quite understand why she would cry about father and I leaving for a while. It could be something about her pregnancy though. She has had quite a hard time this time around. I just smiled back at her, "I will Ma!"

Then father and I grabbed our stuff and went on our way.

_Nightfall~_

There was a chill in the air. The moon fully illuminated our path as we made our way on our journey. Father put his hand on my shoulder making me stop.

"Papa?" I turned my head and saw his face. It looked...sad. His eyes were soft and he sighed.

"Keiko I am taking you to a man named Jun. The Uchiha made a deal with him to not attack us or the leaf village if we were to provide him with a strong apprentice. I know that you are strong and I know that you would be the best fit for this job. Will you accept this mission as your first mission as a ninja to protect the leaf and Uchiha?" His voice was strong and comforted me. Of course I was shocked to say the least. However a wave of excitement overcame me. _My first mission!_ I smiled and gave a small nod.

"Of course papa!" Then everything went black.

_Jun's House~_

I woke up in a small cot with my bag in the corner of a stone room. I slowly got up rubbing my aching head and made my way to the large wooden door. I tugged on the metal knob and furrowed my brows when the door made no signs of movement. "Papa?" My small voice quivered a little bit. My breathing started to become more rapid and heavy. "Papa?!" I rattled the door hard trying to pry it open. Taking a few steps back I tried to just breathe and assess the situation. Suddenly the door flew open and the sheer power of the wind made me fall. A tall man emerged in the doorway and smirked. His burnt orange hair was shaggy and he wore only a pair of dark grey pants and was shirtless.

"Finally awake brat?" His raspy voice made my skin crawl. He then walked towards me slowly as I desperately tried to shuffle backwards. His hand quickly wrapped around my neck and lifted me up to be eye level with him. I grasped his wrist with both of my hands trying to claw for air while he just smirked and whispered, "you're staying here now matter how much you struggle. You will never see your parents or little brother again. You will never be strong enough to protect anyone." He dropped me and then began dragging my along by my hair ignoring my cries. I let the tears flow. _Never see Ma, Papa, or Itachi again? I thought I was just an apprentice? What's going on?_

I then felt a sudden burning in my eyes. I squeezed them shut until the burning stopped. When I opened them I felt a surge of power flow through me. I kicked myself up and wrapped myself around his arm that was holding my hair and slammed my fist into his elbow resulting in a loud _crack_. His grip loosened from my hair and I managed to jump out of his grasp and land a few feet away from him. He let out a cry grabbing onto his arm and sent a horrifying glare towards me, making me freeze for a moment. In that moment he flashed behind me and slammed my face into the floor and growled, "Fucking try anything like that again and I will kill you." I coughed in response trying not to breathe in my blood that was pooling on the ground from my now broken nose. He dragged me down the hall and threw me into a cell with another girl my age. She had really pretty blonde hair with soft brown eyes.

_Timeskip to age 15~_

_It was raining. Akari and I had just finished training and had followed Jun to the arena for a "big event."_

"Well girls," Jun paused and smirked, "the big event starts now, starring the two of you in a grand death match!" He laughed and took out two remotes. We knew exactly what those remotes were for. During our time at Jun's we have had electrical collars on the whole time to make sure that we would obey his each and every word. Akari and I gave each other a quick nervous glance but took position anyways. Before I could weave a sign Akari had lunged at me with her katana which I could barely dodge and resulted in a small cut on my cheek. I jumped up in the air and took a huge breath of air,

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" I screamed as a huge ball of fire made its way towards Akari sizzling and leaving a nasty burn on her right arm. We dueled for a little bit before Jun became bored and shocked us both as a warning to get on with it. I fell on my knees and gripped my sides as the wave of pain washed over me. I grunted and lunged at Akari with my kunai and my eyes glowing with the sharingan. She didn't even try to dodge and my kunai plunged deep into her heart. Her scream still echoes in my ears. She knew she wouldn't be able to win. She could only do taijutsu. Maybe that's why she just gave up in the end. My heart was racing and my body shook. "AKARI!" I screamed and held my bloody friend in my arms and cried. I could see my reflection in her pool of blood mixed with the rain water. My sharingan had changed. It was now the mangekyou sharingan, resulting in a slow clap from the sadistic redhead.

"Great job Uchiha! I didn't think you had the guts to do it." He chuckled and walked on. I stood up. Covered in my best friends blood and glared at the back of Jun. The rain poured down harder and the thunder roared in the sky.

I followed Jun and waited for him to fall asleep. Then I released my jutsu that I had created myself. _Summoning: Dragon of Death! _I walked out of the burning house with adrenaline pumping and my face seething with anger.

_Back at the Leaf Village_~

I walked to the Uchiha clan's main entrance and noticed something was off.. With a pit in my stomach I ran straight to my old home. _Please be okay please be okay please be okay_. I ran into the house and gasped. On the ground. My dead parents and Itachi standing over them. Another small boy was just a little bit in front of me knocked out.

"Itachi?" I choked, fighting back the tears I took a step towards him. In a flash I felt him behind me.

"If only you had come home sooner." He mumbled and hugged me from behind. I knew that something big must've happened for him to do this. I took a deep breath and soon my knees buckled and everything went black. Just before I passed out I felt Itachi put something in my hand.

_End Flashback~_

I was waiting outside Third Hokage's office in my anbu uniform. Sasuke graduated from the academy today and I had just gotten home from a long mission. I hope that I can get home soon enough to cook Sasuke some dinner tonight. Hokage beckoned me in his office and there stood a tall man with silver hair and a mostly lazy look about him. I bowed to the Hokage and he continued, "Keiko I am now moving you from anbu to jonin. I believe that Kakashi's team would be in need of some extra help." I removed my mask and rested my hand on my hip.

"Oh really?"

**A/N: Here is the first chapter! I actually have this story completely published on Wattpad if you are interested in finishing it there! If you would like another update please let me know :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Team Dynamic**

Lord Hokage kept a stern look on his face. "Keiko, Team 7 includes Naruto and Sasuke. Both of them are extremely impressionable and need strict guidance. I also know that you and Sasuke haven't been able to be there for each other after you joined the Anbu." I tensed up a little, not only have we two not bonded, but Sasuke has been resentful towards me for not being there when the Uchiha needed me. With a small bow, I then agreed to become Team 7's second instructor.

I followed the silver haired ninja out of Lord Hokage's office and walked towards the rooftop. A gentle cool breeze rustled my long black hair. Once we got to the rooftop he stopped and leaned against the railing crossing his arms across his chest. I stood in front of him, noticing he was quite a bit taller than me. It was definitely weird to be out of my anbu clothes, so I had put on my tan cape with high collar and Uchiha crest on the back along with my fishnet tank top and long gloves that came up past my anbu tattoo and only showed my thumb and pointer and middle fingers. I played with my necklace with the yang symbol hanging off of it, it was the necklace Itachi had given me before he knocked me out that night. The silence between us was strangely comfortable even though I had never really formally met the infamous Kakashi Hatake.

Just as I was about to open my mouth to introduce myself he spoke up, "I am Kakashi Hatake, since we will be working closely together I guess I can tell you a little bit about me." His black orb softly looked down at me. _He's really relaxed compared to all the rumors I had heard about him_. "I have been an anbu member for a while until a few years ago I have been assigned to help guide a team. Of course I haven't passed anyone yet because of the lack of teamwork in each team." I raised an eyebrow but I knew what he was alluding to. Just being in the anbu will teach how important teamwork is.

"I understand that. I am Keiko Uchiha." His eye was studying me up and down, I'm sure it is weird to be teamed up with an Uchiha again since Itachi was on his team. "I happened to return to the village the night Itachi..." My voice trailed off and a flash of my bloodied parents popped in my head. Shaking my head I continued, "Anyways, since then I have been a part of the anbu. No doubt to be under close supervision. One other thing though." His eyebrow raised slightly when I suddenly frowned. "Sasuke and I are not close, since I wasn't there when he was growing up and then not being able to do anything about the massacre..." I paused and started playing with my necklace again, "there has been some resentment from him." Kakashi held his chin in thought then gave a slightly creepy smile.

"Well that just means you get some family bonding time!" His voice was very...cheery... I just gave an awkward smile and scratched the back of my head.

"I guess that's one way of doing it." I sheepishly replied. He then stood up straight and gave me a small wave and said,

"Well, I will see you at introductions at noon." I gave a small smile and looked up at the sky. _Wait a second...It is noon.._. I sweat dropped and just shook my head and made my way towards the classroom to meet our new team.

I walked into the classroom and saw the three students that Kurenai was going to lead just leaving the classroom with the three genin Kakashi and I would be watching over waiting at the same table. The blonde haired genin was pouting with a slight blush on his face, the pink haired kunoichi glared furiously at the blonde kid causing me to raise an eyebrow. _What happened? _I then noticed Sasuke had a slight blush on his face as he glared outside the window. _Now I really want to know what happened_. I gave a small cough to gain the attention of the trio. Immediately all three of their heads snapped towards me with wide eyes.

Sasuke gave me a slight glare where as the other two stared in awe. I crossed my arms and leaned against the wall. "Well? At least tell me your names so I don't just identify you as blondie and pinky." Instantly Naruto blurted out,

"I am Naruto Uzumaki!"

"I'm Sakura Haruno!"

"Tch." Sasuke rolled his eyes and continued to stare out of the window.

"Thank you, I am Keiko Uchiha. I will be your sensei from now on. Your other sensei will be here shortly." _At least I hope so_.

"Uchiha? Are you related to Sasuke?" Sakura looked up excitedly hoping to see any emotion from my little brother.

"I am." Looking at Sasuke with a hint of sadness in my eyes. _I hope someday I can be as close to him as I was with Itachi_. "But we will get to understand each other a little better when all of us are here." As I spoke I watched Naruto "sneakily" put an eraser in between the door so that it would fall on Kakashi when he opened it. "Naruto." I gave him a small smirk, "even though he is late, I cannot defend you if you get in trouble." He gave me a small pout but was soon replaced by a huge toothy grin.

_1 Hour Later~_

Kakashi opened the door with the eraser landing on his head. _Seriously? Did he mean to do that_ ? I sweat dropped while Naruto cackled so much he almost fell out of his chair, Sakura was freaking out and Sasuke... Well he was being Sasuke. "Seriously? An hour and a half late?" My voice was laced with annoyance.

He sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, "Sorry I was helping an old lady carry her groceries." _That takes an hour and a half_..? "Anyways lets go. We need to get to know each other if we will be on the same team." The five of us walked upstairs and did our little greetings and then explained that they would take a test with Kakashi the next day to decide if they returned to the academy or not. Then Sasuke and I started to make our way home.

"Sasuke we need to talk." I put my hand on his shoulder and had him face me. For once he wasn't glaring at me. "I get that you may blame me for not being there that night Sasuke. I promise you I would have if I could have. I never got to say goodbye and I never got to see you grow up before then." He frowned and glared at the ground. I continued, "You are my little brother and I love you very much. Please let me be here for you now." I think I'm finally breaking through. He turned to me and shuffled his feet a little.

"Will you help me train and become strong enough to defeat Itachi?" He looked up at me with hopeful eyes. The first time I had seen Sasuke show any emotion towards me. Now of course if I hadn't been on long missions for so long with the anbu, maybe we could have bonded sooner. I just can't shake the feeling that what Itachi did was for a reason. However he told Sasuke to avenge the clan so who am I to stand in the way?

"Of course Sasuke. I'll teach you everything I know." I tousled his hair and he gave me that same adorable pout that Itachi would give me when we were younger. We had reached our apartment and I made Sasuke a celebratory dinner for graduating then there was a knock on the door. My heartbeat sped up a bit as I walked towards the door. Sasuke was just finishing his dinner and paid no mind to it. I opened the door and was greeted with a soft kiss on the cheek.

"Tenzo!" I got a huge smile on my face and gave him a huge hug. He was still in his anbu uniform to which I found quite attractive. He smiled and followed me into the apartment. Sasuke looked up and gave me a questioning look. "Sasuke, this is Tenzo. We were on the same anbu squad ever since I came back into the village." He just shrugged and started towards the door,

"I'm going to go train."

"Ohhh no you don't. You are going straight to bed. You have a big day tomorrow." I grabbed his collar and dragged him into his room lecturing on the way, "now I want to hear those teeth being brushed, AND a shower as well." He just grumbled with a grouchy look on his face but obliged.

Tenzo smiled and snaked an arm around my waist pulling me closer to him. "Are you excited to start working with your own team princess?" He nuzzled into my neck making me smile.

"I am very excited. I really think Sasuke and I will be able to bond and this way I can keep a close eye on him as well. That Kakashi fellow is uh, quite the character." All of a sudden Tenzo's face lit up.

"You're a co-leader with Kakashi senpai?" I sweat dropped and nodded slightly. "OHHH tell him I say hello!~" I laughed and snuggled into his chest.

"I'll miss spending so much time with you Tenzo." I spoke softly. He lightly stroked my hair and kissed my forehead.

"I'm gonna miss you too princess."


	3. Chapter 3

**Keiko's POV**

The sunlight shone brightly through my window as I sleepily fluttered my eyes open. I slowly got up and stretched my arms and legs. _Tenzo must've left early this morning_. I looked around the apartment with no sign of him. _I guess he could've been called on a mission_. I thought to myself as I started pulling out some food to make Sasuke's lunch after his test. That's when I noticed the note on the refrigerator,

_Princess - meet me at the ramen shop after you drop Sasuke off_.

I smiled to myself and finished making Sasuke's boxed lunch. I then made my way to Sasuke's room. He was completely knocked out. His hair was all messy and he was softly snoring and the blankets were tightly wrapped around him like a cocoon. Making my way around the side of his bed, smiling sweetly I gently grabbed the edge of the blanket and yanked as hard as I could. Resulting in my little brother being flipped out of bed with a slur of groggy angry words. When he noticed me laughing, he glared and then launched himself cannon style towards me. With a small step to the right I just giggled and said, "Hey, it's time to get up. Your lunch is on the counter." He growled and dusted himself off.

While getting ready for the day, I put on my high collar black V-neck dress ending mid thigh with some black over the knee boots and hoop earrings and left my hair down. I smiled to myself and when Sasuke was ready we started our separate ways.

_In front of the ramen shop_~

Tenzo was leaning against the side of the building waiting for me and smiled sweetly as I gently grabbed his hand and he led me inside. Waiting there for me was my favorite meal. Tsukemen Ramen. I had a wide grin and instantly gave him a peck on his cheek. "Awe, Tenzo! Thank you so much."

"Of course Keiko." His eyes flickered with a tinge of sadness making me frown a little.

"Are you okay?" He just shook his head and smiled again,

"I'm great princess. Now eat up before your food gets cold." We ate up quickly and then started walking around town and admired the little shops and stopped at a bridge eating a sweet dango each.

"So why did you take me out today?" I leaned on him and he wrapped an arm around me giving me a tight squeeze and took a deep breath,

"I'm leaving Keiko." I froze and looked up at him, my eyes begging for an explanation.

"What do you mean leaving?" My voice shook a little.

"I'm being sent on a multiple year solo mission. In all honestly, I don't know if I will be coming back." I felt my eyes start to water and quickly moved my gaze down shuffling my feet. He gently cupped my chin and brought my gaze back up to him. "Princess, I don't want to make you wait for me. You deserve someone better. Someone that you can share your identity with, your past, present, and future with. You can't have that with me. We have been together for a year now and have been on the same team for 3 years now. We still have no idea about each other's past. I know this is hard but I want you to be happy. As much as you deny it now, you know it is true deep down." At this point tears started to spill down my cheeks and my lip started to quiver.

"Tenzo..." I quickly wiped the tears away and closed myself up. "I'm not ready to say goodbye..." I croaked. He sighed and wrapped me up in a tight hug and kissed the top of my head.

"I love you Keiko." With those last words he disappeared. I leaned on the railing on the bridge and a single tear dripped from my face and fell into the water.

"I love you too." I whispered looking down at the note he had left this morning. I could feel my body closing off my emotions. Cursing to myself I incinerated the note and went back home. The kids and Kakashi should be done with the test soon.

_A couple hours later_~

I was dressed in my normal cape, fishnet shirt, and ninja pants waiting at the memorial stone. They had just finished up with their test and learning a few new formations. Naruto's face perked up when he saw me.

"Keiko sensei! WE PASSED!" His jumping up and down and scream must've annoyed Sakura because she grabbed him by the ear,

"SHE IS RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU NARUTO." She yelled in his ear. I smirked a little and rested one hand on my hip and with the other gave them a thumbs up.

"Okay team 7, go get some rest. We will be starting on our first mission tomorrow." Kakashi patted Naruto and Sasuke's heads.

I nodded and waited as the three genin left. They were most likely going to get some more food from the sound of Naruto chanting ramen over and over again. I then turned my gaze to Kakashi's onyx orb.

"So, how'd they do?" I crossed my arms in front of my chest. Feeling emotionally drained from before I just kept my voice monotone and my face stoic.

"They actually surprised me," He put his hands in his pockets and slouched a little bit and continued, "Their teamwork needs a lot more improvement so keeping their focus will be the biggest struggle."

"Do you think I could work with Sakura alone tomorrow after the mission? Her chakra control is amazing and I really think if she was able to know how to train on it, she could grow really fast." I stated. He thought for a moment and agreed,

"That sounds like a good idea. Sasuke and Naruto are good rivals for each other's training anyways." He paused, "However I do think we should get to know each other a little better as well. All I know is your name and family."

"That's all you need to know right now." I snapped and quickly turned around. He grabbed my arm and spun me towards him.

"You know that won't work out well. After practice tomorrow we are going to get to know each other better. There is no better way to do that than sparring. Plus it would be a chance to show the kids high level training." He grinned under his mask causing my heart flutter a little making me frown.

"You better be prepared to lose tomorrow." I couldn't help but smirk a little at the thought of a new sparring partner. He kept his pace up with mine and continued,

"We will see about that Uchiha." His tone was taunting causing me to clench my jaw and crack my knuckles.

"Watch it Hatake." Causing him to laugh nervously.

_Tomorrow will be interesting_.


	4. Chapter 4

**Fight**

It was the next day and we had finished up our small mission and were doing some training. While I was teaching Sakura how to use her chakra control with weapons, Kakashi was having Naruto and Sasuke spar. They had been training for a good while at this point and Kakashi nodded towards me for us to have them stop. My heart started to beat faster as my excitement started to kick in for Kakashi and I's fight. I signaled for Sakura to stop and follow me. We met up with Kakashi and the boys and Kakashi had them all stand in a line.

"Now, you all have learned quite a bit today from practice. Keiko and I have decided to spar for the three of you. Keep a close eye on how each of us moves. Now we're going to limit the spar to just genjutsu and taijutsu so that we don't completely destroy the area." Kakashi smiled a bit and keep eye contact with me the whole time. We move to the middle of the clearing and got in our stances. I had decided to wear my jonin vest today with some shorts on to make my movements a little easier.

"I hope you're ready Hatake." I smirked and adjusted my gloves pulling out a kunai. _I won't activate my sharingan yet to test how strong he is_. Kakashi also pulled out a kunai and got into his position. In an instant we both clashed our kunai together. I swung my left leg up towards his face, which he caught with his right hand making me kick my right leg up to jump back. We continued to clash and block quite a few times. Not able to land a blow even at going at our fast pace. Kakashi must've decided to up the ante and lifted up his leaf headband revealing his sharingan, prompting me to activate mine. Our speed got even faster until I decided to try a genjutsu on him.

**Kakashi's POV**

I decided to show my sharingan to make things a little more interesting. I saw Keiko's eyes change into bright red as well. Our movements got even faster blocking each other's attacks until I had finally landed a kick to her side then I noticed that she started to get slower. _Is she getting tired? No. She was an anbu. I doubt that. Something is off_. Just then I felt a swift kick to my back barreling me forward hitting a tree. _Genjutsu! She's better than Itachi_... I quickly turned my body to block another kick. I saw a slight look of sadness on her face but was instantly replaced with a smirk.

**Keiko's POV**

I was actually enjoying sparring with Kakashi. He kept up really well even after briefly falling for my genjutsu. It reminded me of when Tenzo and I sparred making me a little sad but when he blocked my kick so swiftly I couldn't help but smirk at how quick he was. Then it was back to clashing and using our taijutsu. I could hear Naruto cheering each time we would clash. Just then when he blocked another one of my punches I kicked around and so I was sitting on his shoulders, I then swung backwards trying to get him to lose his balance. All of a sudden I felt him grab my legs and unwound them however I had managed to get him to lose his balance and turned quickly and pinned him on the ground. I was sitting on his hips and we were still exchanging punches and blocks. He then just grabbed both of my hands and held them from moving. "Tch. I let you win." I rolled my eyes and couldn't help but smirk.

"If you say so Hatake." He stood up and extended his hand out which I took and then with a smile on my face and pulled him down. "umph." He grunted and obviously wasn't expecting me to pull him on his ass. I smirked and dusted myself off. The three kids ran up to us. Naruto was pretty much jumping up and down yelling about how cool it was and how he's going to be that strong one day. That's when Sakura hit him on the head.

"Too loud baka." She grumbled. Sasuke did a half smirk.

"Well." Kakashi cleared his throat. "Hopefully you all had been watching. Being able to see your opponent's attack and to counterattack instantly. Now that was just genjutsu and taijutsu. Trying to add ninjutsu adds another layer of being able to plan a counterattack instantly AND correctly." He put his hand on his hip and smiled making eye contact with me. I felt my heart skip a beat and I quickly averted my gaze to Sasuke and I tousled his hair making him grunt and shoot me a glare.

"That's right. You're free to go for today. You can train or just relax. We have a full day tomorrow." I crossed my arms and leaned on my left leg. Naruto jumped up and down demanding that we all go get ramen with Sakura pretty much dangling on Sasuke's arm. Kakashi walked over to me and stood in front of me and leaned his head closer to my face and whispered in a deep low voice,

"Meet me here tonight at 8." _ What?_ I just nodded and did a quick turn away. I then decided to just go home for a bit. Flashing home I sat in my bed and sighed. Taking my hair down and plopped backwards. _I wonder how Tenzo is doing_. Then my thoughts started to swirl. Wondering how things could have been different. I'm missing Itachi. I'm missing Tenzo. Now I'm feeling completely lost as to how I'm feeling about Kakashi. Sure he is amazingly strong and intelligent and his mask makes him all the more intriguing. But what really draws me in is his voice. It's deep and laid back, and it draws me in without me even noticing. I scrunched my eyebrows together and frowned.

_7:45 PM~_

After being lost in thought for a while I glanced at my clock and decided it was time to meet Kakashi. Not entirely sure why he wanted to meet with me but I decided to just go along with it. I got to the training grounds early so I just sat down in the clearing messing with some of the grass. There was a cool breeze, gently moving my hair out of my eyes and rustling the trees. Then I saw Kakashi's figure walking towards me his hands in his pockets and he was slightly slouched. I stood up and dusted myself off. Just then there was a decent gust of wind making my hair fly backwards.

**Kakashi's POV**

I saw Keiko get up and look at me. Her long raven black hair was flowing behind her making my heart beat a little faster. I stood up in front of her and looked into her big dark eyes. "So why did you ask me to come here?" Her voice was soft and I had noticed that she looked kind of tired and drained.

"I did say I wanted to get to know you better didn't I?" I raised an eyebrow as she rolled her eyes.

"Kakashi," my heart skipped a beat, "I told you that you don't need to know about that." She sighed and ran her fingers in her hair.

"Keiko, Tenzo talked to me before he left on his mission." She froze and almost instantly changed her attitude to being annoyed. "He asked me to make sure that you were okay. So, how about you let me," I took a step closer to her. She looked down and sighed.

"I like ramen. It's my favorite food." She shuffled her feet. I laughed and scratched the back of my head.

"Well that's a start. My favorite food is Miso soup." She smiled and shook her head.

"You're a strange one. Did you really have to meet me at night to talk about our favorite foods?" She started walking towards town with me walking next to her.

"I was actually hoping on learning more about you than that favorite food." I noticed her watching a family all smiling and laughing.

"You might be able to get to know me better if we go get some ramen." She gave me a cute grin making me smile and motioned her to lead the way. Her eyes lit up and started marching towards the shop. _She's definitely one of a kind_. That's when I heard an all too familiar voice echo through the street.

"KAKASHI MY ETERNAL RIVAL!"

Keiko's POV

I was walking towards the ramen shop when all of a sudden I heard,

"KAKASHI MY ETERNAL RIVAL!" A very tall strange looking man was barreling down the street. His eyebrows were...bushy... I raised an eyebrow at Kakashi as he sweat dropped at the sight of the man. He skidded to a halt and stood right in front of me, squinting and studying me. _What a pervert!_ In an instance I quickly jabbed him in the face leaving a nice red mark on his cheek. I could hear Kakashi stifle a laugh making me throw a glare at him making him instantly stop.

"Keiko this is Might Guy. He is also a jonin instructing a team." Kakashi whispered while scratching the back of his head. "Ah. Sorry Guy. Are you okay?" He turned his attention to the now sulking man with not only strange eyebrows..but also his hair... Then Guy suddenly stood up and flashed a big grin.

"I am fine Kakashi! Just brimming with the essence of youth!" He loudly proclaimed looking up at God knows where with some weird victory stance.

"Uh huh..." Kakashi nervously laughed and patted him on the back. "Guy this is Keiko. We are leading a team together." I don't know why but Guy then had another creepy look on his face and wiggled his bushy eyebrows at Kakashi.

"Kakashi! You never told me about you being on the same team as her! I thought you were just taking a pretty lady out on a date!" He laughed loudly and slapped Kakashi on the back almost making the tall silver haired ninja fall on his face. I could tell that there was a slight blush on his face.

"Ahem." I cleared my throat making Guy freeze. "I think you two should go have some fun." I pushed the two of them towards town and continued, "I told Sasuke I would help him practice tonight so I really should be going." I lied. _Hopefully this can get Kakashi off my back_. I turned on my heels and started making my way towards the training grounds. I could hear Guy talking excitedly to Kakashi making all of their plans for the night even though it was already getting kind of late.

Kakashi's POV~

I watched Keiko walk away. Her long black hair swayed in the breeze as she made her way towards the training grounds. _She's hiding something_.

Keiko's POV~

I walked through the woods of the training grounds and sighed. I was thankful that Kakashi was being distracted by Guy. I just wanted to just sit out in the rain and collect my thoughts. Especially since Kakashi has been digging for information. The night air started to get a little cold and the wind picked up a little. I could feel a small raindrop on my nose soon followed by a few more droplets. Thunder echoed throughout the sky and lightening lit up the sky. I sat down on a tree branch watching the sky as the rain started to fall harder; getting lost in my thoughts. That's when I had an unnerving feeling in my gut. After sitting on edge for a few minutes I decided to walk around the forest. Then I felt like someone had been watching me. I whipped around and tried to spot whoever was following me through the rain and shrubbery. Believe it or not, my eyesight isn't the greatest and I couldn't see anything. Even though sharingan can't see through objects, I still activated mine to see if there was anyone using a camouflage jutsu.

Still couldn't see anything. Something was still off though. Just then I felt a sharp pain in the back of my neck and then I started falling with my vision becoming blurry and cloudy only to see a dark figure standing over me.

_The next morning Kakashi's POV~_

I was walking through town searching Keiko. Sasuke approached me saying she never returned home last night. Then I remembered she made her way towards the training grounds last night after Guy stopped us. I sprinted into the grounds, the cool air burning my cheeks and the ground was soft from the rain last night. Then right along the treeline I saw a figure hanging off a branch. Then I noticed the long black hair flowing in the breeze and anbu tattoo on her bicept. _What the hell happened? _I ran towards her and gently laid her down on the ground. She was out cold and completely soaked from the rain. I took off my vest and laid it under her head. I then continued to examine her to check for any wounds. Which to my suprise there was none besides a dark bruise on the back of her neck. There was a questionable tattoo on her hand that I didnt think I had seen before but Ill just ask her when she wakes up. However something kept bugging me about that tattoo so I picked up her hand and gently touched it. Then suddenly she clenched her jaw and furrowed her eyebrows. Shortly after her big onyx eyes fluttered open and groggily looked up at me.

**Keiko's PO**V

I felt a sharp pain in my hand making me clench my jaw and open my eyes to see... Kakashi? His eye staring at my hand in worry. I was just about to ask him what was going on then my head started to feel like it was being split open. I grunted and put my other hand on my forehead applying pressue in hopes to ease the pain. My body felt tense and sore and I everything was still cloudy from the night before. Kakashi put my hand down gently,

"Keiko what happened?" I just shook my head and grunted.

"I honestly dont remember." I whispered as the pain got worse in my head. All of a sudden I felt Kakashi pick me up bridal style and started walking towards town. If I wasnt in so much pain I wouldve complained but he had a serious look on his face. Thankfully the grey clouds were covering the sun and didnt make my headache even worse. Just then it started to downpour on the two of us and I felt a searing pain on my hand making me clutch it and whimper. Kakashi looked down at my pain ridden face and then something clicked. I felt my eyes widen and my head throbbing got worse as the picture of a man whom I thought I had killed a long time ago popped in my mind.

_Jun.._

I was gripping my hand and gritted my teeth. "K-kakashi." I stuttered making him stop and look down at me with worry.

"Keiko do you remember anything?" He sat me down and felt my forehead. "You're burning up and you're getting really pale." I slightly nodded avoiding his gaze.

"It's someone I used to know when I was younger." I whispered and rubbed the back of my hand as the pain subsidded. He raised an eyebrow egging me on to explain. I took a deep breath and started to explain my story. Keeping all of the gory details out of it just so he knew the jist of it. "Well anyways. That's the jist of it. You really don't need to know all the nitty gritty details." I crossed my arms and then I just felt my vision get really blurry and my breath started to get shallow. Kakashi worriedly caught me and pulled me close.

"Hey Keiko?" He gently shook me but I was out cold. I was shiverring and breathing heavily. He cursed under his breath and ran off sprinting towards the leaf hospital.

_3 Hours Later~ 3rd person POV_

Kakashi was sitting out in the waiting room with Sasuke. "Sasuke have you ever heard of a man named Jun?"

"I've heard his name maybe once from father. It was a long time ago though." Sasuke furrowed his brow and impatiently tapped his fingers on the chair. "Is he the one responsible?" His voice was low and he was glaring at the wall.

"It seems so." Kakashi sighed and leaned back in his chair. Not long after the doctor stepped out of the room and motioned for Kakashi and Sasuke to come into the room.

"She is stable at the moment. It looks like she just got sick from being in the rain for so long. As for the mark.." The doctor picked up a picture of Keiko's hand and gave it to Sasuke. "It seems to have some sort of connection to her chakra network and after a few tests, whenever she uses even a little bit of chakra the mark starts to glow and seems to put her in a lot of pain." Sasuke put down the picture and walked around Keiko's bed taking her hand.

"I've never seen her like this." He mumbled. Her face was pale and under her eyes are dark.

The doctor continued, "We actually contacted the anbu about this." Making Kakashi raise an eyebrow. "After looking into this Jun fellow, we found out he has had a long nasty history with the Uchiha clan," Sasuke snapped his head up at that comment, "there was some shady business that went along with the elders and him. I'm assuming that is why he had targeted Keiko. There is actually a team of anbu searching for him right now. We shouldn't have anyone this dangerous in the village."

"How dangerous is this guy?" Sasuke frowned.

"Besides the fact he was able to get Keiko off her guard, with her being a long time anbu kunoichi, his history is very graphic and brutal especially with children." The doctor finished checking everything on a clipboard. "I'm sure Keiko would rather I spared all the details."

"Yes I would." a soft voice suddenly spoke up. Keiko lightly squeezed Sasuke's hand, "why are you guys here?" Her voice was weak.

"Because we were wondering if you remembered anything from that night." Kakashi sat at the edge of her bed.

"Only that it was raining really hard I couldn't see very well. I know I felt like someone was watching me but I couldn't pinpoint where he was." She rubbed the back of her hand.

"This all happened on the training grounds?" Kakashi asked and she nodded in response. Then Kakashi pulled out a book from his pouch and handed it to her. "Well since you're going to be here for a little while I brought you a book to pass the time." She smiled sweetly and read the front cover.

"Pride and Prejudice?" She smirked and grazed her hand over the book studying the details on the cover. "I haven't read this book in a while. Thank you Kakashi." She tucked a small lock of hair behind her ear. A small hint of pink covered her cheeks. Kakashi smiled and slowly stood up, hiding a faint blush on his cheeks.

"Sasuke we should go. We have a few missions set up for the day." Kakashi motioned for Sasuke to follow.

"Yeah." Sasuke followed Kakashi out of the room.

Keiko sighed and leaned back on her bed and pulled out the book and started reading. After a little while she drifted off to sleep, probably getting the best sleep she's had for a while.

Later that evening Team 7 popped into the room to check up on their team leader. Naruto being the goofball he is was trying his hardest to get Keiko to laugh which he succeeded on multiple times. Even if it was just a small giggle here or there, she definitely thought the three genin's interactions were humorous. Kakashi was sitting next to her and was watching over her, smiling when she was smiling.

During all of that going on the team of anbu returned with Jun. They were suspicious as to why he so willingly came with them to the interrogation team, but they followed through with their mission. One of the anbu was a close friend of Keiko so she decided to run over to the hospital to give the updated news. She popped up in the window while Team 7 was catching up with what they did for the day and she cleared her throat making Naruto and Sakura jump.

Keiko turned her head and noticed her friend. "Oh my, its been so long! Why are you here?" She had a big smile on her face that slowly faded when her red headed former comrad was frowning.

"Keiko we just came back with Jun." The room became silent. "He is currently in the interrogation unit right now." All eyes were on Keiko, she was looking down at her hand and was fidgetting a little bit. The red head jumped into the room and gave Keiko a hug. "It'll be okay though. You're in good hands." She gave Keiko a wink and a slight nudge making Keiko have a huge blush on her face.

"You're too much. Thank you for coming though." Keiko giggled. After that the kids left after Keiko's friend ushered them out so that Keiko and Kakashi could talk.

"They're a lively bunch." Kakashi laughed making Keiko smile.

"They certainly are." She shivered a little with the open window. He got up and pulled out another blanket and wrapped it around her shoulders. "Thank you." She smiled softly.

"How're you feeling?" Kakashi sat next to her bed and gently took her hand and softly brushed his thumb over the mark. Keiko's heart skipped a beat and then just started examining Kakashi's face.

"I'm better, still feeling a little under the weather." She watched him caress her hand. "So Kakashi, why do you wear a mask?" She touched his chin with her fingertips, not entirely sure what she was doing but she was drawn to him. Everything about him was intriguing and whenever he was around she was comfortable and was willing to talk to him about anything.

"It makes life a little more fun don't you think?" He smirked and leaned closer to her and cupped the side of her face. Ever since they went out in the town and seeing her in such a vulnerable state he knew that he was drawn to her. He wanted to protect her and be there for her. They got closer to each other, her fingers running through his silver locks and his brushing her dark hair out of her big onyx eyes. She then brought her hand right over the edge of his mask and slowly pulled it down. They both smiled as she examined his face. His skin was smooth and somehow even after the mask was off, he was even more intriguing.

Then they got closer. Their lips almost touching and they were gazing into each other's eyes. He gently put his hand on the side of her neck and closed the gap between them.


	5. Chapter 5

**New Love**

It was about noon and I had just been released from the hospital. Kakashi and the kids were sent on their first C ranked mission to escort a old man to his bridge. Hokage had just summoned me to meet him in his office. Entering the room I noticed that Ibiki was in the room as well and realized this was about Jun.

"Hokage-sama." I murmured and gave a slight bow.

"Ah. Keiko. Good timing. We found a way to remove that mark from your hand." The old man gave a big grin. Ibiki motioned me to come over and he started weaving signs that I'm assuming is going to remove the mark. Then he pressed his hand over mine. The mark slowly disappearing.

"How did you get it out of him?" I spoke quietly just staring at my hand.

"We had to go to greater lengths than I would have liked." Ibiki admitted and crossed his arms over his chest. "He will be a prisoner of the leaf for the rest of his life though so we can keep a close eye on him." I gave a short nod and looked over at the Hokage.

"Is it okay for me to meet up with the team then?" I secretly was hoping to see Kakashi again and finally get back into the groove of the team.

"Actually yes. I have a sneaky suspicion they will be in need of some help. But it would be best you don't show yourself completely. I think it would be a good time to bring out your anbu outfit and follow them. The employer doesn't know you and I'm sure would panic if you came out of nowhere." The old man never stopped smiling the whole time making me feel slightly awkward but I just shrugged it off.

"For a C ranked mission?" I raised an eyebrow.

"I think you'll know what I'm talking about when you get there." He then adverted his attention to his paperwork humming. I shrugged and made my way home to get ready for the mission.

_Timeskip a few hours~_

I had finally caught up to the team. The kids were on edge and Kakashi was obviously keeping an eye out. _Had something happened already?_ I noticed Naruto's hand was bandaged and frowned. Just then I felt a dark presence heading towards the group very quickly. I rested my hand on the hilt of my sword just in case I needed to jump in. That's when the demon Zabuza came in and instantly started attacking. I could see fear flash through the kids' eyes as Kakashi instantly started to fight him. As soon as he was put in a water barrier I could feel the panic rise within the three genin's actions and I had enough.

In a flash I was in front of Zabuza with my sword to his neck. My sharingan shining through my mask. Obviously surprised by my sudden appearance he shuffled backwards but that was his mistake, he was already in my genjutsu. All of a sudden a loud shriek of terror came from the so-called demon's lips. I then took both of his arms and restrained them behind his back and threw him over my shoulder. Kakashi was released from the barrier and quickly tried to help me carry the man. The children's eyes were wide in amazement from the sudden assault. My adrenaline was flowing and my temper was through the roof. Almost like I was constantly on edge and ready for any fight that comes at me.

That was what I liked to call the curse of the anbu mask. Every time I put it on it's like a monster is released inside of me. A dark aura is always radiating off of me as soon as I'm set off. Kakashi set his hand on the small of my back and all of a sudden I felt much calmer. I took a deep breath and felt my tension release as the kids smiled with happiness to see Zabuza restrained. My sharingan still glowing through my mask, I made eye contact with Sasuke who gave a slight smirk. I then noticed that Sakura and Naruto were giving me a weird look and the old man was ranting about how he was almost killed. That's when Naruto got really close and was squinting up at me,

"Who are you?" I sweatdropped wondering how many people with sharingan he knows. I glanced up at Kakashi who gave me a small smile and pat Naruto on the head.

"You should know that an anbu shinobi isn't allowed to reveal their identity." He adjusted Zabuza on his shoulder who was completely knocked out at this point. The old man was just about to open his mouth when in a flash I felt another presence in the trees aiming a senbon towards Zabuza. I caught it in between my fingers and glared up in the trees seeing the hidden mist anbu mask. The three genin were ready to attack again where as Kakashi was just making sure not to drop Zabuza since he used up a decent amount of chakra from his sharingan.

"I am here to deal with this criminal. The hidden mist will take responsibility for him." I rested my hand on the hilt of my sword again. I knew of the blood mist and I wasn't about to let him try anything funny. Kakashi and I gave each other a small nod and he handed Zabuza over to the anbu shinobi. When the two of them left I walked up to the old man.

"You know, if one of these genin or my comrade had gotten hurt just because you lied, I would have dealt with you personally." I growled making the old man take a step back and stutter out,

"Y-yes ma'am." Making me smirk behind my mask. I motioned for the team to keep going keeping my mask on just in case any others decide to try to mess with a team of shinobi and an anbu. After a long while of walking we finally made it to the old man's house. I just stood outside keeping an eye out. Something about that anbu didn't set right with me. It was starting to get dark outside and I let out a loud sigh removing my anbu mask. Kakashi pretty much passed out as soon as we arrived and Naruto and Sasuke have been arguing the entire time.

I walked into the house and saw the two boys literally having an eating contest and immediately turned around back outside. I'll let them deal with their little rivalry by themselves. The cool air was relaxing after walking all day. I leaned up against the tree and started to think about the kiss Kakashi and I had. It was nice and comforting his lips were soft and gentle, I touched my lips while thinking about it. However I was confused as to what we were. After the kiss he just said goodnight and went home. The only interaction we had after that was the fight earlier with Zabuza. That's when I heard the door close and I looked over to see Kakashi walking towards me. My heart started to beat faster and I felt a slight blush cover my cheeks.

He stopped right in front of me and the air felt awkward. We obviously were unsure as to how to act around each other.

"Thanks for dropping in the fight." He sheepishly scratched the back of his head. I gave a small smile and fidgeted with my hands, he glanced down and noticed that the mark was gone. "So I'm assuming they have Jun under tight security?" He raised an eyebrow. Honestly I hated talking about him and wished that we could move on from the subject so I just nodded and adverted my gaze to the ground.

"Ibiki said he would be under watch for the rest of his life in the Leaf." I mumbled.

He must've noticed me being uncomfortable and suddenly pulled me into a hug, my head just under his and his arms wrapped around my shoulders. Almost instantly I returned the hug and wrapped my arms around his waist. "Can you tell me how you really feel Keiko?" He whispered and rested his face on the top of my head. I tensed up but realized that it was about time that I told someone how I felt.

"I was scared Kakashi." I whispered and buried my head into his chest a little more. "That man was the reason I didn't get to see Sasuke or Itachi grow up. I could've been there. Maybe no one had to die." I could feel my throat tightening up but there was so much more I wanted to say. "While I was there he did unspeakable things, things that I can't even bring myself to say out loud. Ever since then I haven't been able to be intimate with anyone." I felt a tear roll down my cheek. He released the hug and gently turned my head to look up at him, wiping my tear in the process.

"Keiko, I will never let him hurt you again. You are so strong and beautiful. If you'll let me I want to be there for you always. I'll love you and be there for you always." His deep voice was passionate and even though I was terrified to let my heart be out in the open again. I felt more tears pour down my cheeks but I smiled nonetheless.

"Of course Kakashi." Within that instant his mask was off and I could feel his lips on mine. Even more passionate than before. I snaked my arms around his neck and kissed back as he rested his right hand behind my head and his left on the small of my back. My heart was racing and I could feel happiness bubbling up inside of me and I smiled in the kiss. We broke apart and we stared into each others eyes but then all of a sudden we just started laughing. That's when I noticed that a few eyes were watching our interaction.

I coughed and pointed behind Kakashi who just gave me a wink and flashed up behind them. "You know it is rude to eavesdrop." He whispered in their ears. I could see their eyes widen in surprise and Naruto screamed in shock making me giggle.

Later that night Kakashi and I were sitting together on the floor watching the kids sleep. I was leaning on him and rested my head on his shoulder and his head resting on top of mine, our hands intertwined. I had could feel his breath get deeper and my eyelids also getting heavy and I soon fell asleep.

_Old man's POV_

I checked on the shinobi that had safely brought me home and saw the blonde haired kid sprawled out and snoring loudly making me roll my eyes and then saw the two leaders of the team leaning on each other, surely were tired from handling those three all the time. I smiled to myself. They reminded me of my late wife and I. New love is beautiful.

***Keiko Flashback***

I had woke up wrapped in a blanket and leaning on the wall. No one else was in the room and the house was quiet. I yawned and a smile grew from my lips as I remembered the previous night. Tenzo was right, I needed to find someone that I could talk to. Kakashi is everything I could ask for. He's strong, intelligent, easy to talk to, and well... He's also pretty cute. I made my way out of the house to find the four of my team in the forest about to get training since we had some downtime. Just the sight of them warmed my heart though. They were the closest Sasuke and I would get to as a family. Naruto being obnoxious and a knucklehead brought laughter to the group where Sasuke would usually take the lead and Sakura keeping the two of them in line when they started arguing.

When Kakashi saw me I could see a smile spread across his face making me blush a little. The three kids instantly got a kind of creepy grin on their face as they looked between Kakashi and I.

"Unless you want to do pushups until the sun sets I suggest you all wipe that grin off your face." I put my hands on my hips and looked at them with the scariest face I could muster without laughing. The three of them instantly hung their heads quickly making Kakashi laugh. I instantly smiled again and motioned for them to watch Kakashi so he can show them what they need to practice. Sakura of course got it instantly which is no surprise after working with her chakra control beforehand. So leaving the two boys to work it out Sakura, Kakashi, and I went to watch the old man build the bridge and keep an eye out for any other ambushes.

It was a little chilly that day but the sun warmed us a little. Just a few clouds in the sky and the birds were singing. The only other noise we could hear was the construction of the bridge. That's when a messenger hawk flew down to us. Kakashi removed the message, briefly read it, and grimly handed it to me. I could tell something bad had probably happened. I looked over the message and two words had stood out to me.

_He escaped._

I could feel my body tense up. I crumpled up the paper and stood up. "I'm going to take care of this." My fists were clenched and I grit my teeth. Kakashi put a hand on my shoulder and looked at me pleadingly.

"You should wait so that I could go with you." He whispered. I smiled and gave his hand a squeeze.

"If I wait there could be a possibility of the kids getting hurt. I won't risk my comrade's lives if I can help it." He lowered his gaze and seemed to understand where I was coming from.

"At least let Pakkun come with you so he can let me know if you're in trouble." He summoned the small brown dog without letting me answer. I shook my head and gave Kakashi a small side hug and kiss his cheek. "Actually you don't have a choice." He gave me a small smile. I could tell he was worried though.

"I guess I can let him come." I rolled my eyes and motioned Pakkun to follow me. "I'll see you back at the village Hatake."

"It's a date Uchiha." He lifted his headband and gave me a wink with his sharingan. With that I took off to take care of my past once and for all.

*End Flashback*

I could hear beeping and some mumbled voices. They were mostly muffled so I couldn't really understand them. It was like I was on the verge of waking up but I couldn't move or open my eyes.

I could remember a bunch of blood and Jun laying on the ground dead before me. After I had fully disposed of his body everything went black. Someone was holding my right hand, their thumb gently rubbing the back of my hand. The air was cold though making me shiver a little. The person who was holding my hand let go and soon I felt a warmth spread over my body. I tried to open my eyes but all I could do is feel my eyebrows scrunch together and I could stretch my legs a little. I could then hear the voice get a little louder as if they were calling someone. The voices then started to get a little clearer.

"...If you ca-...hear..squeeze...hand..." I could feel my fingers twitch a little and putting all of my effort into it I could close my fingers around the hand. It felt familiar. I could hear the voices talking excitedly. I could hear my name over and over. I kept trying to move my limbs and open my eyes and soon I could feel my eyelids start to move a little. Slowly I was able to pry my eyes open. Everything was blurry at first but after a few blinks I could see things a little more clear. I could see Kakashi on my right looking at me worriedly and Sasuke on my left obviously looking exhausted. I could then hear Naruto and Sakura sitting outside of the room and the nurse checking my vitals. I could see Kakashi release a sigh of relief and burried his head in his hands and running his fingers through his hair.

"Miss Uchiha can you hear me alright?" The nurse started checking my eyes as I gave a small nod. "Can you talk?" She started to check my reflexes on my legs and arms. I opened my mouth and it felt super dry.

"W-wa..ter.." I croaked painfully. Sasuke jumped up and went to grab a glass of water. The cold liquid felt heavenly down my throat and eased the dryness in my mouth. "How long was I out?" My voice was still a little raspy.

"Almost a month." Kakashi whispered and looked up at me. I could see that he had barely slept. His eyes were dull and bloodshot. I reached out my hand and cupped his face.

"I'm sorry." I felt a tear run down my cheek. He instantly wiped it away.

"Don't be sorry. You took out a very powerful and dangerous enemy. We were just all very worried about you." Kakashi held my hand again.

"How do you know him?" Sasuke crossed his arms.

"Long story short I was sent to Jun by the clan elders to keep the peace between him and the clan. Father was opposed to it but since he was the clan leader it only made sense to send his oldest." I pat Sasuke's knee gently. "It's in the past though. Not much we can do about it now. I just wish I could've been there for-" I cut myself off. "Well, I never got to see you grow up. I hate that I missed out on that." I smiled thankful that I was able to cover up me almost saying I wished I could've been there for him _and_ Itachi. I sighed and I could feel exhaustion wash over me.

"You two should go home and get some sleep. I'm actually pretty tired right now too." I gave a weak smile to the two of them. They sighed and nodded and left. Just as they closed the door, it burst open by Naruto with Sakura close behind him scolding him for being rude.

"Keiko-sensei are you feeling better?" Naruto beamed a smile at me with his arm behind his back.

"A little." I tousled his hair and pat Sakura's head. "What're you two doing here?" My voice was quiet trying not to strain myself.

"W-well..I just wanted to u-uh give you something." Naruto stammered nervously.

"That's nice of you Naruto. You didn't have to do that." I gave a small grin. Thats when he whipped out a small bouquet of flowers. They were all handpicked and not necissarily in the best shape but it made my heart melt. "Awe Naruto they're beautiful." I gave him a big smile and motioned him to come closer so I could give him a small hug. My muscles were extremely sore but he went through the trouble to get me something nice and really wanted me to like them so I dealt with it. Naruto had a small blush on his cheeks but his smile was as big as ever.

"I knew you would like them! I like them because they smell really good." He excitedly explained the whole routine of getting the flowers to me. I could feel my eyelids getting heavy though.

"Naruto I think we should let Keiko-sensei rest some more." Sakura started pulling Naruto out of the room after putting the flowers in a vase next to my bed.

"But she had a whole month to rest!" Naruto pouted making Sakura bat him on the head.

"Baka she was in a coma. That's different!" She pushed him out of the door.

I laughed quietly to myself. I definitely missed those goofballs. I couldn't help but feel guilty though. I promised Kakashi I would be safe but instead I had him worried sick. Interrupting my thoughts I saw Kakashi walk into the room. Without a word his lips were on mine. Taken by surprise I couldn't help but smile into the kiss. I hadn't realized how much I missed his soft lips. He then let up for air and breathed into my ear,

"I missed you so fucking much." His voice was low and gave me a small shiver. "Please don't do anything like that again." He pleaded. Both of his hands on either side of me as he sat on the side of my bed. I felt another tear roll down my cheek.

"I wouldn't dream of it." He gently pulled me into a hug.

"Let me take you out on a date when you are recovered." He laid me back down and kissed my forehead. I smiled and nodded making him smile.

"It's a date Hatake."

It took a couple weeks for me to finally be released from the hospital. Thankfully Kakashi was there almost every day to keep me company. The full team visited at times as well. I decided to wear my normal Uchiha cloak and fishnet shirt today. I was still bandaged up around my arms but that was just covered by my long fingerless gloves, I took a deep breath of fresh air and a faint smile on my lips grew when I saw a particular silver haired jonin waiting for me outside. I took his arm as he grinned under his mask.

We walked through town and stopped at a few shops and having a really good time with each other. "Kakashi what is it about the kids entering the chunin exams about?" I raised an eyebrow as he awkwardly laughed.

"Heh well I think we can both agree they have all improved immensely. Plus they have been training even harder ever since you have been in the hospital." He wrapped his arm around my shoulders and kept walking. I gave him a small smile and nodded.

"I've heard that the test starts tomorrow. Are they all working together better?" I stopped and looked up at him.

"Maybe we should go watch them train then." He nodded to his left. I just then noticed we were at the usual training grounds. I could see the pink, blonde, and raven haired genin practicing formations. They were super focused for once and I could tell they had been working really hard. I gave Kakashi's hand a light squeeze and smiled.

"They sure have grown." I grinned as we just sat where we were just to watch the group practice and not interrupt their focus. Of course that didn't last too long, Sasuke noticed us almost instantly and pointed in our direction. All of a sudden the three of them started running towards us. Naruto yelling about a bunch of things which really just sounded like gibberish he was talking so fast. Earning a swift bonk on the head from Sakura.

"S-sakura-chan why'd you do that?" He rubbed the back of his head.

"Baka slow down. Kakashi sensei and Keiko sensei can't understand you like that." The pinket rolled her eyes.

"Hn." Sasuke glared at the blonde but had a small smirk on his lips.

"I heard you three were entering the chunin exams. Are you all ready?" I crossed my arms and let a soft smile play on my lips.

"There's one formation we need to go over more because _someone_ keeps forgetting it." Sakura looked pointedly at Naruto who just sheepishly grinned and put his hands behind his head.

"I just need to go over it one more time Sakura-chan!"

"Tch. You've been saying that for the past hour." Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"You'll have to go over it until everyone has it down. It'll do no good to not be prepared for every possible outcome." I frowned and crossed my arms. "Do not take this test lightly. There have been genin die from the chunin exams before. It must be taken very seriously." I saw Kakashi nod in agreement.

"Try the formation one more time. We'll watch and see how you can improve." His deep voiced echoed around the clearing. I could see the determination flash across their faces as they got into position again.

_Later that Evening~_

After a few more tries of the formation Naruto finally felt comfortable with memorizing it. They had some time to show us a few other formations as well. Then the three of them went home to get some rest before the big test tomorrow. That just left Kakashi and I together in the training grounds. The moon shown brightly illuminating the area around us. The air was a little chilly and I could feel butterflies in my stomach. After seeing a few of the other village's contestants in the exams in the village today I couldn't help but feel nervous for our genin.

"You know they'll be okay." Kakashi lifted my chin up to make eye contact. "We have the whole village survellianced." I forced a small smile.

"I know that." I spoke softly and turned my head towards the village. "I have a bad feeling nonetheless."

"Hm. Well let's get your mind off of that for now." Kakashi sat down and tugged on my arm. I grunned and sat across from him on the grass. He pulled out a scroll and formed a few signs and in a soft_ poof_ a picnic basket was summoned.

"Did you plan this?" Brushing a hair behind my ear blushing a little.

"I did say I wanted to take you out when you got out didn't I? I guess I can be a little bit of a romantic." His cheeks were visibly red from the top of his mask.

"I'm glad you're not just a pervert from the books you read." I giggled as he sweatdropped and scratched the back of his head.

Later that night he was walking me back to my apartment. It was so quiet after all the shops were closed it was nice to have a little peace. My finger was hooked on his pinky as we talked the whole way there. Once we got to my door I truly smiled and kissed his cheek.

"Do you want to come in for a bit?" I could feel my face grow warmer. He smiled from under his mask and nodded. We both walked in and I led Kakashi through the 2 bedroom apartment. I checked Sasuke's room first to make sure he was asleep then proceeded into my room. Sitting on my bed patted the spot next to me. We were both leaning our backs against the wall looking at each other. "So why don't you tell me a little more about your eye?" I was tracing my fingers around his palm. He looked up at me and I could see sadness in his eye. "Of course you don't have to tell me if you don't want to though." I quickly noted, not wanting to pry too much. I know I had a lot of trouble telling him about my past. I took my hair down and let it lay around my shoulders.

"It happened on my first mission as team captain." He pulled me into his lap and started playing with my hair.

**(A/N: I'm not going to go into huge detail of the eye story due to spoilers and the fact that it would take a lot of time and would bore anyone who already knows what happens.)**

After explaining his whole story I gave him a big hug and whispered in his ear, "I'm so sorry Kakashi." To which he just shook his head and nestled his head in the crook of my neck.

"It's over now. I just want to make Obito and Rin proud." His voice vibrated against my neck making my heart skip a beat.

"I'm sure you have. You do everything you can for everyone." I played with his hair.

Just then he started kissing my neck making me laugh. I jumped around and straddled him. Pulling down his mask I started to kiss all over his face getting him to laugh and a big smile spread across his face. He laid me on my back and leaned over me and quickly pressed his lips on mine passionately. His tongue lightly licked my lips for entrance which I denied. Then he glided his left hand down my side and gave my butt a light squeeze making me gasp a little. Taking advantage of that he slid his tongue in my mouth exploring every inch of it making me moan slightly.

Then he started gently placing soft kisses along my jawline and neck then he hit a spot on my sweet spot making me lightly grasp his arms and arch my back. He then grasped the small of my back pulling me closer to him. Then a flash of anxiety hit me making me gently push Kakashi off of me. "That's enough for tonight. I'm sorry." I sat up and pulled my knees into my chest. His warm hand cupped my cheek as his soft lips connected with my forehead.

"That's alright. Don't ever apologize for what you're not comfortable with." His voice was soothing and his smile made me smile as well. However his smile faltered, "Is it because of him?" All I could feel was the anxiety grow and remember that first night I lost my innocence. Giving Kakashi a small nod I puled my legs closer to me and buried my head in them. I could feel his long arms wrap around me as a warm tear ran down my cheek. His chin lightly resting on the top of my head.

**A/N: The next written part in italics contains sensitive and triggering events, so if you aren't wanting to read that then just skip over it!**

_Flashback~ _

_It was a terribly cold day that day. We had just went through severe training with Jun. I was laying in bed exhausted. Just then my door slammed open and the putrid odor of sake wafted through the room and the tall shadow of Jun filled the doorway. Barely able to sit up from the overuse of chakra I stuttered out, "W-what is it?" He just stumbled towards me and in one swift motion had my throat in his hand and pinned me against the wall. His long orange hair draped over his eyes and his shoulders. I squeaked and squirmed against his grip but my body was too tired. He roughly threw me against my bed and I could hear the rustling of his clothes and him stepping closer and closer to me. In an instant my clothes were ripped off of me._

_The realization of what was happening to me set in and the tears instantly started to flow. "P-please stop. please." I pleaded as he loomed over me also missing his clothes. He slapped me across the face._

_"Shut the fuck up." He positioned himself in front of me, I tried to keep my legs closed and covering my breasts with my arms. He just swatted at me like a fly and immediately took my innocence. I couldn't help but scream as the pain shot through me, I sobbed and cried and kept trying to push him off but all he did was hold my hands above my head as he had his way. As I was on the verge of passing out from him also choking me, he finally finished and threw me against the wall. "Pathetic." And with that the door slammed shut._

_It was that night that I decided to train my hardest so that I could never have that happen to me again. Then I could finally kill that man. The source of my suffering._

Tears were streaming down my face and Kakashi lifted my face to make eye contact with me. "Keiko I will never force you to do anything. He is gone and will never hurt you again. I'll never let you be hurt like that again." I gave him a weak smile and ran my fingers through his soft silver locks.

"Thank you Kakashi." I gave him a soft kiss on his cheek. I could see he looked absolutely exhausted. He has been training the kids for a while by himself. It's taking a toll on him. I could feel a small blush on my cheeks. "Um do you want to stay the night? You need some rest." I whispered as he gave me a small yawn.

"If you don't mind." He said sleepily. As we laid down together closely I could feel his breathing slow and in almost 5 minutes he fell asleep. It wasn't long before I felt my eyes also get heavy with sleep. Hopefully the kids are ready for tomorrow.

**Hey guys! This is actually a cleaner version of the story I have on Wattpad due to me not wanting to break any rules here.**

**If you like the story so far, leave a review or favorite/follow so you know when I update!**

**Thanks for the love and reads!**


	6. Chapter 6

It was early the next morning and Kakashi was still sleeping soundly next to me. I smiled and gently crawled out of bed to start making coffee and breakfast for Sasuke and Kakashi. It wasn't long before I had the coffee ready and breakfast sandwiches ready. I poured Kakashi and I a cup of coffee each and set out a cup of orange juice for Sasuke. Letting Sasuke rest a little more before the big day I just brought the coffee into my room and gently cooed,

"Kakashi~" Suprisingly he actually started to wake up and noticed the cups of coffee in my hands.

"Oh. You got up early. You didn't have to do that." He sleepily rubbed his eyes and sat up taking his cup.

"It's alright. I wanted to make breakfast for Sasuke too." I gave him a small smile and sat down next to him.

"Let me check your bandages." He gently started unwrapping the bandages on my arms. They seemed to be healing nicely. There were only a couple scratches at this point. I looked over at the clock and noticed it was time for Sasuke to get up.

"I should go wake up Sasuke." I started to get up and he pulled me back into his arms and encased me in a hug.

"Nnno." He mumbled into my hair. Almost like a kid throwing a fit.

"I'll only be gone for a couple minutes." I giggled and pushed myself out of his grip, earning a pout from the silver haired man. Smiling to myself I entered Sasuke's room and saw my little brother sleeping soundly. I gently shook his shoulder, "Sasuke, it's time to get up. I made you breakfast before your exam." He sleepily opened his eyes and suddenly shot up.

"What time is it?" He seemed to have a glimmer of excitement in his eyes.

"7 am." I grinned and tousled his hair and suprisingly not earning a grunt or a complaint. "Everything is on the table." I mentioned as I left his room so he could get ready. As I walked back into my room Kakashi had already his jonin vest and mask back on. "Hello dear." I smiled and jumped towards him in which he easily just caught me bridal style and swung me around making me giggle.

"You're in a chipper mood." He grinned under his mask and gave me a soft kiss on the forehead.

"Mmhm. My bad feeling about the exam is gone for now. I have a feeling they're going to do great." I smiled and gripped onto his neck. I could feel his muscles flexing from under me making me blush slightly. "Kakashi." I looked up at him and gave him a gentle slap on the cheek. "I know you're doing that on purpose." He laughed and shook his head.

"You got me there." He set me down on the bed. "We should meet the other jonin at the hokage's office after meeting with the team." I nodded and started to pull on my tall boots. Just then I heard a faint knock on my door. "Yes?" I called out. Kakashi was leaning against my wall and I zipped up my jonin vest as well.

"It's me." I heard Sasuke's muffled voice through the door.

"You can come in." And with that he opened the door quietly and looked fully ready to take the exam.

"Are you ready to go?" He asked. His hands were in his pockets and he was slouched slightly.

"Yep." I said as I fully pulled my boot on. With that the three of us set on making our way to meet up with the rest of the team.

After having the team set up and ready to go the jonin of all the teams that were participating met up at the hokage's office to discuss the exam and then move to the survaliance room for the exam and see how the teams faired. As we entered the survaliance room I had noticed I have never met the other jonin and only knew their names. That's when Kurenai suddenly pulled me aside.

"Hi, I'm Kurenai! It's nice to meet you Keiko." She gave me a small smile which I returned.

"It's nice to meet you too Kurenai." I then noticed everyone's eyes on me. In which I gave them an awkward wave. Kakashi was also standing pretty close to me and his hand was barely touching mine. That's when the bushy browed jonin piped in,

"Hey Kakashi! Are you two finally dating?" I could feel a small blush form on my cheeks as I sent Guy a death glare. Immediately he shut up and awkwardly laughed.

"Oi! Kakashi you didn't tell me you finally found yourself a girlfriend." Asuma laughed.

"Just like you didn't tell anyone about you and Kurenai?" Kakashi laughed as well when Asuma's face immediately turned into a deep red as well as Kurenai's.

Once everyone settled down the chunin written exam finally started. I rested against the wall next to Kakashi with my arms crossed. The other jonin making small talk about the exam and the students from the sand village. That's when I could feel that pit in my stomach again, my lips forming a small frown. However I just kept quiet and not long after the written test was finished. Soon enough they would be moving on to the second part of the exam. Pulling on Kakashi's sleeve I nodded towards the door and with a small nod he followed me out of the room.

"I have that bad feeling again." I crossed my arms and leaned against the wall.

"What is the bad feeling about? The hidden sand?" Kakashi raised an eyebrow.

"No more than usual. I have a different bad feeling though." Staring out the window I could see the sun shining brightly. Kakashi took my and lightly brushed his thumb over the back of my hand and gave me that signature smile.

"Whatever it is. We'll make sure to be ready if something does happen." He leaned against the wall next to me. I gave him a small smile and leaned my head against his arm.

"How do you think they'll fair in the survival portion of the exam?" I pondered out loud.

"Hm. Seeing the other students participating, as long as they don't run into the wrong team I'm sure they'll be fine." He spoke quietly.

Time went on and we were all intensely watching the cameras for the 2nd part of the exam. It was already nightfall and only a few teams had fought it out. Getting a glimpse of team 7 I was proud of how they were doing. Their teamwork has improved immensely, even more so from the training from yesterday. However I have been getting a glimpse of a snake around them for some time now and that bad feeling started to grow.

"That snake..." I mumbled as we watched the team get seperated. That's when I noticed a person attached to it. _Was it summoned?_ I frowned as it went to attack Sasuke then all of a sudden the screen went black. I could feel my body tense up since I had a bad feeling about that snake for a while now. Sensing my discomfort, Kakashi rested his hand on top of mine and gave it a light squeeze.

"The battery must've ran out. I'm sure he's fine." He tried to comfort me but I could feel the anxiety building up inside of my chest. I knew I had to just let it go for now until the 2nd exam was over. So taking a deep breath I sat back and crossed my arms. Waiting for this exam to be over feels like an eternity.

After the teams had finally assembled at the tower, Kakashi and I eagerly awaited them and I could quickly notice that something was off between the three kids. I made eye contact with Kakashi and worry was also written across his face. I could feel myself get antsy and time went by so slow as they continued with the exam trying to slim down the size of the group. As soon as Sasuke's fight ended I could see him gripping his shoulder making me flash down towards him and pulling him into a different room with Kakashi right behind me.

"Sasuke what happened?" I crossed my arms and stared intensely at him. He scowled and glared at the ground. Without a word he moved his shirt so that his shoulder was in view. That's when the dark markings of a curse mark surrounded by the skin being reddened from irritation of the mark. I whipped around and looked up at Kakashi. He sighed and gently patted my shoulder.

"Sasuke this is going to hurt a decent amount. I hope you're ready." Kakashi kept his voice low and pulled his glove tightly. "Also before we start, it would be in your best interest to not to speak about this to anyone until we know exactly what it is and what it does." Sasuke gave a small nod still gripping his shoulder.

Later that evening I just finished helping Sasuke into bed. He was roughed up a lot more than he let on. I couldn't help be extremely proud of him for powering through and the three of them working really well together. I went outside and saw Kakashi waiting for me nearby. A cold breeze rustled the trees and bushes. I couldn't help but shiver as I walked towards the tall jonin.

"He was out pretty quickly. The lot of them were exhausted." I gave a worried sigh. He pulled me close to him and wrapped his arms around me with his cheek gently resting on the top of my head.

"It'll all work out. We have a month to train them and get Naruto and Sasuke ready for the finals." He spoke softly as he gently rubbed my back in our embrace.

"I hope we didn't make a mistake putting them in the exam." I sighed letting go of his waist and started rubbing my temples. He gently started rubbing my back, I could tell that he felt tense as well. Taking a deep breath and putting a fake smile on my face, "It'll be fine though. We're here to support them."

"Of course we are. I have my chidori jutsu for Sasuke to learn and I also know that Jiraiya-sensei will be training Naruto. So they're both in great hands." He rubbed my shoulders and smiled under his mask. I could feel my tension fade away as a real smile formed on my lips. Taking his right hand and wrapped it around my shoulders, I started walking down the sidewalk and slid my left arm around his waist. "What are you doing?" He laughed.

"I thought we could go on a walk. I felt like I have been a little stressed over the kids lately. Maybe it's a little unfair of me to worry so much, I should have more faith in them." I looked up at Kakashi, his silver locks gently swayed in the wind.

"To be fair they are a reckless bunch." He chuckled and tightened his grip around my shoulders.

Stopping at the end of the street, Kakashi suddenly picked me up bridal style and twirled around making me giggle a little.

"Why don't we go to your place?" I winked and traced his collarbone with my fingertip. In response he immediately flashed into his house and shoved me against the wall making me gasp. Taking advantage of the moment he slipped his tongue into my mouth making me moan quietly. Kissing him back passionately I tangled my hands into his hair untying his hidden leaf band letting it drop on the ground with a thud. He then grabbed each of my legs so that I was straddling him as his hips grinded against mine keeping me pinned on the wall. Tightening my legs around his waist I slid my jonin vest off...and well you know the rest (;

.

During the last part of the exam the hidden sand attacked with their jinchuriki and Orochimaru took advantage of the situation trying to destroy the hidden leaf but the third Hokage stopped him at the cost of his life. We all had just gotten to the training grounds for a meeting after the funeral. The three genin looked up sorrowfully at us.

"I know you three are grieving right now. The third hokage was an amazing shinobi willing to sacrifice himself for his village. However it is also our duty as shinobi to continue to protect the village." I gave a soft smile to the three of them. "Now the three of you get home and rest up. We will be helping rebuild the village tomorrow." I motioned for them to get going which the three of them slowly walk together. Chatting amongst themselves. Their bond growing stronger together.

A few weeks had passed from the funeral. Everyone seemed to have finally started to relax as the village started to look better day after day. I had just finished training with Sasuke for a little while on his sharingan. That's when I felt _his_ chakra. I never thought I would be able to see him again but ask to why he was even in the village astonished me. I could feel my heart beating faster and I quickly scanned Sasuke's face to see if he could feel it too, as far as I could tell he was still oblivious to the whole situation.

"Sasuke keep practicing, in time you will become faster and your power will grow quickly. First master the chidori with it, then you will be able to grow at a faster rate. It's all about patience and persistence. There's no easy way around becoming powerful." I tousled his hair much to his protest. I grinned and gave him a thumbs up. "They would be proud of you Sasuke." He couldn't help but smirk at that comment and started working on the chidori again. I gave a small wave to let him know I was going to leave. Almost instantly I flashed over to where I felt _his_ chakra. _Why show up now of all times?_ I frowned as I ran into a building and upon reaching the second floor I could see Naruto standing in a fighting stance.

"Naruto get behind me." I barked as I ran as fast as I could in front of him just in time to block an incoming kunai. I immediately activated my sharingan and glared directly into my little brother's sharingan. He seemed to be accompanied with a huge blue man with shark-like qualities. I could feel Naruto quiver a little behind me.

"Sharingan? Is this your sister Itachi?" The blue man loudly laughed with a sadistic grin making me grit my teeth, trying to think of a way to lead them away from the village.

"Naruto get out of here now. Alert the jonin that the Akatsuki are here." I looked over my shoulder at the small boy who frowned,

"I'm not leaving you alone!" He protested.

"Now Naruto!" I barked at him drawing out a kunai in each hand. To which he nodded and started running.

"We won't let him get away. We're here for the nine tails jinchuriki." The blue man pulled off his large sword. Then his name clicked in my head - Kisame from the Hidden Mist - I smirked at his remark.

"You'll have to get through me first." I flashed them a sadistic smile. The next moment Kisame dropped to his knees clutching his eyes and screaming in pain. Tsukuyomi complete. Using my right eye's ability, Koutsuu, I transported right behind Itachi landing a swift kick on his back. He rolled forward and pulled out a kunai as well. Taking advantage of the situation I grabbed the nape of Kisame's neck and started dragging him behind me as I made my way out of the village trying to gain as much distance as possible. Kunai flying every which direction and I finally reached the border of the leaf village at the lake. Dropping Kisame I instantly started weaving signs which was matched by Itachi and we yelled in unison,

"Fire Style: Fire ball jutsu!" Where huge flames flew from our mouths incinerating a huge circle in the ground.

"You shouldn't have come Itachi." I growled as my heart sank and broke looking into his cold eyes. His expression didn't change but I immediately grabbed my necklace that he left in my hand the night he killed our clan. "I still have the necklace you gave me that night Itachi." I could feel myself getting choked up. I miss him and I wish he would just come home. "I have so much to tell you." I mumbled. He looked down and pulled out the other half of the necklace that was around his neck.

"It truly is a pity things turned out like this." A small frown formed upon his lips, "I would've loved to speak with you one last time." I started walking towards him slowly.

"Why did you do it?" My eyes were stinging as tears threatened to form.

"I can't tell you." His voice was low as I stopped right in front of him.

"You've grown taller." I pushed a strand of raven black hair out of his face. "You really plan on letting Sasuke kill you?" I whispered.

"There's not much time, but Madara is alive. He must be able to awaken his mangekyou sharingan to stand a chance with him still in this world." He slipped a scroll into my hand and gave my forehead a kiss. "I truly wish we could've grown up together. Maybe we could've changed things together." I could see sorrow in his eyes now.

"Madara? That should be impossible!" I slid the scroll in my pack and quickly hugged my little brother for the first time in 20 years. "Please be careful Itachi. I so wish there was another way, but I will trust your judgement and train Sasuke the best I can." And with that he took Kisame's limp body in his arms and sped away. It was moments later that Kakashi and a few other jonin showed up.

"Where are they?" Kakashi quickly searched over my body for any injuries.

"They're gone Kakashi. I was able to get one with my Tsukuyomi, Itachi tried to put up a fight but probably sensed you guys coming and fled." I blinked away my sharingan and then the toll of using Tsukuyomi and koutsuu too much washed over me. My knees got shaky and I started to fall forward as Kakashi caught me in his strong arms and scooped me up.

"You overdid it. You shouldn't have taken _two_ of them on all by yourself." He scolded but sighed a few moments later, "at least you're alright though."

"They were after Naruto and the nine tails Kakashi. I don't know why but I had to get them away from the village and Naruto." I spoke lowly.

"We'll bring this up to Lady Tsunade when she arrives. For now, you just need rest." He kissed my forehead.

"I need to speak with Sasuke." I felt my eyes getting more tired.

"I'm sure he will want to speak with you too. I will have him come to your room. He's probably still practicing the chidori." His deep voice helped me relax as I blinked sleepily.

I woke up later that evening to Sasuke closing the door to the apartment. Kakashi was sitting at the end of my bed reading his makeout paradise book. Pushing myself up so I was able to sit up against the wall, I was thankful to see a cup of water waiting for me on my bedside table. Sasuke lightly knocked before entering the room. His eyes looked dark and his arm was in tatters from the chidori.

"You've heard about what happened?" I asked to which he nodded. "As of right now I would say that Itachi and I are about the same level, however i'm sure his endurance is better than mine at the moment. If you want any chance to defeat him then you and I need to train hard. Starting tomorrow I will be pushing you a lot harder and will be expecting a lot more from you. You asked me to help you reach your goal and I plan on helping you. Any complaints?" I rested my hand on his shoulder and gave it a small squeeze. He seemed to have even more determination in his eyes at this point.

"Not at all." He stood up and started making his way out of his room. "Thank you." He mumbled. I gave Kakashi a tired look and sighed.

"I'm hungry." I mumbled making him chuckle.

"I'll go make you some ramen."

"But I wanna cuddle." I whined.

"It won't be long." He smiled and gave me a small peck.

After eating some ramen he set the bowl on my table and laid down pulling me on top of him. I smiled to myself and kissed his cheek. It wasn't long before sleep overcame me.

"Goodnight Keiko. I love you." He mumbled into my hair as the both of us fell asleep with a smile.

"I love you too Kakashi."


	7. Chapter 7

About a month had passed and I went out shopping with Kurenai since we've really bonded since the chunin exams. While passing the ramen shop the usual delicious smell that brought a smile to my face made my stomach churn and ended up with me sprinting to the nearest restroom. I barely made it to the toilet before I started throwing up. Panting heavily, I shakily stood up and flushed the toilet and went to go rinse out my mouth and wash my hands when Kurenai ran in,

"Are you okay?! One moment you were next to me the next moment you were running like a madwoman!" She was also panting from running to catch up to me.

"Oh-uh yeah I'm fine." I awkwardly laughed and scratched the back of my head, "I just think the ramen I had last night isn't setting well with me." Then almost instantly she got a serious look on her face and started looking me up and down and honestly making me a little uncomfortable. "Enjoying the view?" I raised an eyebrow as a small blush formed on my cheeks.

"Have you and Kakashi had sex?" She wiggled her eyebrows with a creepy smirk on her face. I could feel my face get redder.

"W-what kind of question is th-that?" I stuttered out failing miserably trying to hide my blush.

"I'll take that as a yes. When was your last period?" She started shoveling through her purse.

"It hasn't been regular lately since I've been in and out of the hospital the past year so often." I awkwardly laughed again seeing what she was getting to but was denying it deep down. "But I know my last one was about a month and a half ago." With that she instantly shot up with triumph as she whipped out a pink box.

"I think you should be safe and take a test dear." She handed the box to me.

"Why do you have this on your person? Are you and Asuma doing more than you're letting on?" I returned the wiggly eyebrow stare as her face instantly got red.

"Sh-shut up! Just go pee on the stick goofball." She laughed.

About 5 minutes had passed and I was staring at the stick in the stall. I felt frozen and a little anxious. Kurenai softly knocked on the door making me jump a little.

"Everything going okay in there?" She whispered.

"Y-yeah. I-uh got the result." I slowly unlocked the stall and handed her the test. Her lips grew into a big grin. I couldn't help but smile too.

"How do you feel?" She clapped happily.

"I'm excited! I've always wanted a family and I know that Kakashi has too. However I don't think we were planning this early." I laughed picking up a bag. Kurenai gently pulled it out of my hand.

"Oh no let me carry it Mama." She gave me a wink making me roll my eyes.

"I'm not even showing yet. I can carry a few bags." She, however, still insisted on carrying my bags. I couldn't help but smile. I was glad to make a friend like her.

Later that evening I had finished making dinner just as Kakashi and Sasuke walked in. Kakashi had been training Sasuke recently to really perfect the chidori since my training with him helped with his use of his sharingan. The pregnancy test was still in my pocket as my heart raced just looking at Kakashi. I poured the miso soup into each bowl and carried them to each chair.

"Thank you for the food." Kakashi gave me a soft kiss on the forehead.

"It's no problem." I smiled. "How was training?"

"Sasuke is doing great with the chidori. He can even use it at farther distances at this point." Kakashi praised making my little brother give a small smile.

"That's great Sasuke. Keep it up." I was about to take a sip of the soup when all of a sudden I felt a wave of nausea wash over me making me drop my spoon and dash towards the bathroom and start throwing up. I gripped the sides of the toilet tightly as I panted and flushed the toilet. I just leaned my back against the wall with my legs pulled up against my chest.

"Keiko?" Kakashi walked in and felt my forehead and started stroking my hair. "Are you feeling okay? You don't have a temperature." He continued to stroke my hair calming me.

"Yeah I'm fine." I mumbled, feeling anxious again. I didn't know the best time to tell him but I felt like he would want to know as soon as possible. "Actually, I do have something I need to tell you." I looked up at him and I could see worry written across his face. I reached into my pocked and pulled out the stick and put it in his hand.

"What is thi-" He stopped mid sentence as his eye grew and blinked a few times. He rubbed his eye and blinked a few more times at the stick. "Is this yours?" He looked back and forth between me and the stick. I nodded as my anxiety grew. That's when a huge smile formed under his mask as he embraced me in a tight hug. "I'm gonna be a dad?" He whispered in my ear.

"You're gonna be a dad." I confirmed with a smile on my face returning the hug. He instantly stood up and spun me around laughing and giving me a huge kiss.

"I love you so much Keiko." His face still smiling.

"I love you too." I giggled. "Sasuke!" I called out as Kakashi set me down. I could hear him walking quickly down the hallway.

"Is everything alright?" He peeked into the bathroom at the two of us grinning like idiots.

"Mhm. Sasuke you're gonna be an uncle." I beamed. His mouth dropped.

"What? Really? You're pregnant?" His mouth grew into a genuine smile.

"Mhm." I grinned as I pulled him into a hug.

"Who else knows?" Kakashi leaned against the wall.

"Just Kurenai. So that means Asuma knows." I giggled. Just as I said that I heard a loud knock on the door. "Who could that be?" I wondered out loud, "you two finish eating, I'll get the door."

"Are you sure?" Kakashi asked worriedly.

"I'm not that far along Kakashi. You don't have to fuss over me yet." I laughed as I made my way to the door. I opened it to be face to face with Guy and behind him were Kurenai and Asuma. "Uh... Hello." I sweatdropped as Guy posed and just before he could start a long winded speech I just pointed in the house, "come on in. There is soup if you want and Kakashi and Sasuke are already in there." I couldn't help but laugh but not before shooting Kurenai a look making her give me an apologetic smile.

The three jonin guests all congratulated us and stayed a few to catch up. Sasuke went out to hang out with Naruto and Sakura because of some festival going on. I was feeling absolutely exhausted by the time everyone had gone just leaving Kakashi and I.

"Would you guys like to come to the festival with us?" Kurenai gave me a small hug.

"Yes Kakashi! I challenge you! Whomever gets there first wins!" Guy excitedly yelled.

"I'm actually pretty tired right now. You guys go on. You should go to Kakashi." I kissed his cheek and pushed him towards Guy.

"Are you sure?" He looked down at me.

"Yeah I'll be okay. I'm just going to get ready for bed." I smiled up at him as he gave me a soft kiss on the forehead earning an_ 'awe'_ from Kurenai and Asuma making me roll my eyes. "You guys have fun." I laughed as they waved goodbye. I sighed and took my hair out of the ponytail and started to brush it out. I hummed to myself happily and set down my brush and braided my hair into a loose side braid and pulled myself into bed. I couldn't stop smiling from the idea of becoming a mom. However I felt a pit form in my stomach like something bad was about to happen. I then looked up into my window.

I instantly jumped up pulling out a kunai as the figure with an orange mask slowly opened my window.

"Who are you?" I growled activating my sharingan but after getting a better look at his mask I could see the red glow of sharingan making me freeze.

"Surely you know who I am already." He laughed and crossed his arms.

"Madara?" I whispered, gripping my kunai tightly. In a flash he was behind me,

"Scream and I'll kill you." His menacing voice was deep as it tickled my neck. I stiffened and stood up straight. "You see, I have doubts about Itachi's loyalty to the Akatsuki. He slipped you a scroll with all of our information did he not?" I tried to keep my face as stoic as possible, not making a peep. "Well no matter, I decided that the best way to keep him under wraps is to hold something dear over him. Well, that just happens to be you." He laughed darkly. My heart was racing. In a flash I went to stab with my kunai but my arm just went right through him. He instantly countered by grabbing my wrist and twisting it behind my back making me drop to my knees. "Bad mistake. You're coming with me." Then everything went black.

I awoke in chains sucking out my chakra and a blindfold over my eyes. "H-hello?" I called out. I felt my anxiety rise. I couldn't sense anything but I had a feeling someone was watching me. "Is anyone there?" I called out again. That's when I could hear footsteps getting closer to me.

"So this is her?" A woman's voice gently asked.

"Yes." I noticed was a man's voice. "Bring her to the room. Madara will want to make sure Itachi has a clear picture of what is at stake." I could hear a cell open and my chains being unlocked. I know that making a scene now would be unwise. It would be best to learn as much as possible about the enemy before I try to escape. The woman led me gently through the corridors with the blindfold over my eyes. I could hear the man in front of me open a door and the woman pushed me through onto my knees. That's when my blindfold was taken off. I noticed the man speaking had bright orange hair with piercings everywhere, the lady speaking had soft blue hair with a few piercings as well. In front of me was Madara and in front of him was Itachi.

Madara then whipped around and grabbed a fistful of my hair making me yelp pulling me up onto my feet. "I know you gave her a scroll of us Itachi. If you value her life you better not make any more mistakes." His voice resonated throughout the room. Itachi's face stayed stoic with his sharingan shining towards me, I looked away shamefully. I know this must've made things a thousand times harder for Itachi. He brushed passed me as I watched him exit the room.

"I'll also have you know Itachi." Madara spoke in a higher voice and laughed making him stop at the doorway. "She's pregnant." My heart skipped a beat and my anxiety grew again making me shake a little. I could've sworn I saw sympathy in the woman's eyes but I knew better. They were from the Akatsuki, they don't care about me or what happens to my baby. With that Itachi fully exited the room and the woman started escorting me back to my cell.

"What's your name?" I spoke softly as I looked up at her when she locked my cell.

"Konan." She abruptly turned and left quickly. I sighed and sat down on my bed and pulled my knees into my chest. I can't stay here. Even to get information on the enemy, I can't put my baby at risk. _ Kakashi please know that I'm going to try to come home soon._

I had fallen asleep about an hour later but woke up at the sound of footsteps down the hallway. That's when I noticed a familiar set of red eyes glowing at me.

"Is it true?" Itachi spoke lowly making me look down at my hands.

"Yes. I just found out yesterday." I looked up at him with sad eyes.

"Who is the father?" He walked into the cell and locked it behind him.

"Kakashi. We've been together for a while now." I hung my legs over the edge of the bed to let him sit next to me.

"I'm sorry Keiko. If I hadn't done that you would've been home safe." He tightened his fist.

"It's okay Itachi. At least I get to see you and we get to talk." I played with my necklace that he gave me and leaned against his shoulder.

"Does he treat you right?" He looked down at me making me smile.

"Yes Itachi. He's quite the gentleman." Amused by his sudden protectiveness.

"Good. Or else I would have to kill him." He smiled.

"You're quite protective for a little brother. I remember having to carry you when you got a scratch on your knee." I teased.

"I'll do what father wasn't able to." He rubbed my shoulders, I felt more relaxed with him near. I am so thankful for him.

"Thank you Itachi." I yawned as I slowly fell asleep against his shoulder.

The days passed turning into weeks and those weeks turned into months. Konan would bring me food and Itachi would come visit once in a blue moon. There were no loopholes. I searched every nook and cranny of that cell. Plus Madara kept everything tight locked with security and there was a plant man keeping guard almost 100% of the time. Thankfully Konan would speak to me every once and a while and would check on how the baby was doing. Granted there wasn't a hospital anywhere near so it wasn't very extensive but considering the situation I was in, I was grateful to get anything. Since I was roughly four months along I was just wearing an oversized t shirt that went passed my knees and kept my hair in a braid.

Something that annoyed me was I didn't get to see the rest of the Akatsuki very much. I had only seen Kisame when he came to get Itachi and he would send me a dirty glare every time because of our last encounter at the leaf. As the days went on I felt more restless and my anxiety grew. I wanted to be home. I don't know if my motherly instincts were kicking in, but I wanted nothing more but to get out of there. About once a week I was allowed to walk around the hideout but only with Konan right at my side and with the chakra draining chains on.

Then one morning I started to have some serious cramps. I whimpered in pain as I clenched my jaw and hugged my growing stomach. The plant man stayed put with his back to me until I felt nausea wash over me making me throw up. Coughing and panting I shivered and pulled my blanket around me tightly. The man turned around and the white half of him spoke up and started talking to his other half which was black.

"Maybe we should get leader. If she's sick we don't want it spreading." His other half just gave a small grunt in response and he sank into the floor to get their leader. Honestly I was too out of it to pay too much attention to him. As time went on my pain got worse and I could feel blood flow into my underwear. _ Something is terribly wrong_. I felt a tear slip down my cheek. A minute had passed and I could hear footsteps coming down the hallway and I could hear both Konan and Itachi speaking to each other. Konan unlocked the cell and felt my forehead.

"She has a fever and has obviously gotten sick." She looked over into the bucket that I threw up in, "are you in any pain?" Itachi wiped some hair out of my paled face. I could only nod and pant as I shivered and clutched my abdomen.

"I-i'm bleeding." I whimpered looking up at Konan and seeing her expression grow more serious and Itachi looking concerned made my anxiety grow.

"We need to get her to a hospital." Itachi urged Konan.

"You know we can't take her out of the hideout." Konan sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

"Then look away for a moment while I go. I'll deal with the repercussions later." I felt more blood roll down my leg and I felt my body involuntarily shake.

"Fine. Hurry." Konan sighed and quickly got up. "You'll have only a few minutes to get out."

With that Itachi scooped me up in his arms and dashed out of the cell. I gripped his cloak as tears streamed down my face. I was terrified. Is my baby okay? "Itachi make sure my baby is okay." I whispered as I faded out of consciousness.

I awoke in a white room with a doctor writing something down in a clipboard. I could hear her whisper, "Poor thing," while shaking her head.

"H-hello?" I looked over at her as she turned around and gave me a sad look.

"How are you feeling darling?" She came over and dabbed my face with a damp cloth.

"I'm okay. I feel strange right now." I wiggled my fingers and toes. "Is my baby okay?" My mind was clouded with worry. She looked down and pulled a chair up next to my bed and took my hand.

"Honey you had a miscarriage." She patted my hand and looked at me sadly. It was like the world stopped. My throat tightened as tears sprung to my eyes.

"What do you mean?" I croaked and rested my other hand on my face to cover my tears streaming down my face. "My baby is dead?" I choked out.

"I'm sorry for your loss dear. Your baby was dead for a while and so your body rejected it and that's what started the miscarriage. We do have him if you want to give him a proper burial." I just shook from my tears.

"Him?" I looked up at her sadly as she nodded. "Can I see him?" I pushed myself up to a sitting position. She solemnly stood up and pushed a cart up next to my bed. There he was. My baby boy laying there lifeless. He was so tiny I could hold him in one hand. I looked down sadly at him as I lightly stroked his cheek with tears still streaming down my face. "I want to bury him at home." I dried my face and took a deep breath. "Where am I?"

"The hidden valley's village." She washed her hands and started wrapping my baby gently in a baby blue blanket. "Do you need help travelling?" I just shook my head trying to just stay as emotionless as possible to make it easier on myself. There will be a better time to grieve.

"Thank you doctor. It's time that I go." With the help of my doctor and nurse I was given some loose shorts and a loose shirt. I took my baby in my arms gently and started to make my way to the hidden leaf village. I just walked quietly on the road with my long raven hair swirling in the wind. The sky was covered in dark grey clouds, I could smell the rain about to fall. I didn't care though. I know that Itachi left me so that I could return home and I planned on making it by nightfall.

The day went on fairly peacefully and it just sprinkled on my way there but right before I got to the gate of the hidden leaf it started to down pour. Right at the gate I just dropped to my knees. I could hear the guards shouting something but I didn't care. I felt drained and depressed. I clung to my poor baby as tears spilled down my cheeks again and I cried. I didn't care who heard me. My heart was broken. My little one was dead. My little baby boy didn't have a chance. If I was home I could've known and he would've had a better chance at life. If it wasn't for Madara, my baby would be alive.

I felt a hand on my back and I turned my head slightly to see the familiar red eyes of Kurenai. My eyes were bloodshot and my lips quivered. She got on her knees next to me and embraced me. I felt numb as the rain just rolled down my back.

"I'm so glad you're okay." She cried.

"My baby is dead Kurenai." I spoke coldly as she gasped and looked down at my little bundle in the blue blanket.

"I'm so sorry Keiko." She looked around her and yelled over to who I assume was Asuma, "Get Kakashi NOW!" She gently picked me up as I just stared into the sky with dead eyes. I could see Guy and his team look at me with a solemn look. I made no reaction. I was covered in mud and blood but I didn't care. Kurenai walked slowly through the village. That's when I sensed him. Running straight towards me I could see his silver hair flowing almost in slow motion. He swiftly took me out of Kurenai's arms and held me close. I could see he had been crying and I looked up at him.

"Kakashi." I reached a hand up and cupped his cheek as a tear fell. I looked down sorrowfully at our baby. "He didn't make it. I had a miscarriage." I choked as more tears spilled out. He looked down at the blue blanket and moved it to see his son's face. Gently stroking his little cheek a small tear escaped his bloodshot eye and dropped to his knees. He set me on his lap and cradled us. Our baby gently resting between us as we cried. My head was resting on the crook of his neck. He pulled my chin up and kissed me softly.

"I'm so glad you're safe. Our baby may not have made it. But I know that we will be okay. We are here for each other now and I will never leave you again." He whispered against my lips. I kissed his cheek.

"I love you."


End file.
